Rail-joint.



P m E m mo HJ L M E B f No. 836,953.

3 SHEBTSSHEET 1.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.- 24. 1005.

No. 836,953. PATBNTED NOV. 27, 1906.

B.\WOLHAUPTER.

RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION FILED 14112.24. 190s.

a SHEETSSHEET 2.

RAIL JOIN T.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.24.1905.

a sums-sums.

cosy

UNITED SilAll lS PATEN' OFFICE.

BENJAMIN WOLHAUPITER, OF ClllCAUrQ, llililNOlS, ASSIGNOR TO THE RAIL JOINT COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF N EW YORK.

FiAlL-JQINT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. N:ov. 27, 1906.

Application filed March 24, 1905. Serial No. 251,705.

A rail-jointembracing my invention em braces in its general features two joint-bars provided with inwardly-facing longitudinal grooves adapted to receive the base-flanges of the rails and clamping means holding the said. bars in contact with the opposite sides of the rails, together with separate coupling means for joining the abutting ends of the rails, so to prevent relative endwise movement thereof. It also includes means for electrically insulating the rails from each other, on bracing layers of insulating material interposed between the said base-flanges of the rails and the parts of the joint-bars which embrace the same, and insulation interposed between the engaging parts of the coupling means by which the abutting ends of the rails are joined to each other.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described, and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, illustratin my invention, Figure l is a View in side elevation-of a i"ailjoint embodying one form of my invention. Fig.2 is a cross-seciion taken upon line 2 '2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a crosssection taken upon line 3 3 of Fig. i. Fig. 4 is a side view of another for." of oi mnbodjving the inain'features of 11. low..- tion. Fig. 5 is a planvicw of one of the jointbars illustrated in Fig. 4. Fig. (3 is a crossseciion taken upon line ti 6 of Fig. i. Fig. 7 is a cross-section taken upon line 7 T of Fig. i. Fig. 8 is a cross-section of a T bar from which the joint-bar shown in Figs. *1 to 7 may be made. Fig. 9 is a view in side elevation with parts in section, showing still another form of joint embodyingthe principal features of my invention, Fig. 10 is a cross-section taken on line it) lo'of Fig. i). Fig. H is a cross-section taken upon line ll 11 of Fig. 9.

First referring to the form of construction shown in Figs. 1, l, and 3, A A indicate the meeting or abutting ends of two rails to be joined, and B B two joint-bars, which are located at opposite sides of the rails and are provided with inwardly-facing longitudinal grooves adapted to receive the opposite margins of the basedlangcs of the rails, said joint-plates B B, as shown in the said -figures, having on their inner faces inwardly-extending flanges B 8*, between which are formed the grooves referred to, the upper flanges B extending above the base-flanges of the rails and the lower flanges 8 extending below or beneath the same. Said upper flanges B" are inclined inwardly and upwardly to correspond with the inclination of the top surfaces of the base-flanges, while the lower flanges B" are horizontal and have their upper surfaces parallel with the bottom surface of the rail. Said bottom flanges B" B rest at their end portions nponiho ties, which are indicated by O U, and form supporting members on which the rail ends rest. The j ointbars are also provided with vertical longitudinal stiti'cning-flangcs l3 l3, 'cxtciulim upwardly from the upper flanges B 13' am. reaching the entire length of the joint-bars. At their central parts, (iweenthe tics O the joint-bars are also provided with depending bolt-engaging lugs 13 B, the bottom surfaces of the horizontal flanges 13 B" affording Y .the said tics O as clearly seen in Fig. 1..

The central parts of the j0int-bars have the stifl'ness or capacitv to withstand vertical st rcsscs due to'llu extension of the stifl'cningflanges 13 above the flanges B and B so that said joint pla! cs possf ies great cstqstrengih at the part thereof which cxtciuls between the tics, where ihc greatest at rcngth and stillness is required to withstand tcndcnov to downward flcxuro at the meeting ends of the rails. To hold the joini-platcs made as described in contact with the sides of the rails, llOXiZUiliitl clamping-bolts l) l) are employed, which extcnd through apertures iu the lugs B" l3 bclow the horizontal bottom flanges B B thereof.

E E indicate washer-plates, which are applied between the head and nut on the ends of the bolts and the outer faces of the joint bars B B. Said washer-plates are preferably extended a considerable distance above and below the bolts and are made of considerable thickness, giving them great rigidity.

' The lower ends of said washerplates bear on they bear at joint-plate. The washer-plates thus con.

plates at-points opposite'the base-flangesof the lowe margins of the lugs B 13, and their upper ends bear on the joint-ban horizontally opposite the base-flanges ofigthe rails, said washer-plates E being'recessed on their inner faces between their ends; so that their end portions only on the structed and arranged serve to transmit'the endwise tension of the bolts to the jointthe rails, notwithstanding any slight inward bendim or flexure of. the lugs B 13 which may talre place in the tightening of the bolts by reason of the flexibility ofsa d lugs. The

lower end :of each lug B serves as a support or fulcrum for the lower end of the washerplate en aged therewith,"v the upper end of said was er-plate being forced against the tral part of said was i F F indicate strips or layerso'f msulatin joint-ban above the bolt by thepressure of the heads oriiuts on {the .bp lt against the cener-p ate.

material .interposed between the {stop an bottom surfaces of the base-fianges of-the rails and the flanges B 'B onthcjointlates,

or, in other words, between the railanges" and the opposed surfaces offthe grooves a which receive said. base-flanges. "Saidstrips' nection with aninsulating post or layer G,

. other in such manner as .to prevent relative bars or members H H.

or layers F F of the insulating material thus applied serve to insulate the ends of the rails from'the jointplates, and therefore, in conwhich is interposed between the meeting ends of the rails, to-insulate the said rails from each other.

In connection with the joint bars or plates arranged to engage the base-flanges of the rails, as above described, provision is made for connecting the ends of the railswitheach endwise movement thereof, as follows: To the oppositeusides-of each of the rails A A are secured longitudinally-arranged coupling Said bars are adapt- -ed for interlocking engagement with each other at, their meeting ends, and for this purpose are provided at their adjacent ends with oppositely-extending vertical arms h h, arranged in overlapping relation to each other. The arm h on the bar H extends np'wardly therefrorn,-while the arm h on the bar, H extends downwardly therefrom, and saidadj acent ends of the bars H H have their horizontal parts disposed at such'distance vertically from each other and the ends of their arms? hf} which extendtoward'eacli otherin ove'rla'ppmg' relation, at such distances from the adjacenthorizontal parts of the bars that said arms h h are free from contact with said horizontal parts of the bars and from contact with each other.

The insulating layer or postbetween the'ends of the rails, is prpvided at its opposite sides at points between thebaseally-extending projectionsor lugs g g, Fig. 2, andsaid ln s are arranged in such relation to the arms h on the bars H'H that said arms engage op osite sides of said lu gs g, and the lugs are t us interposed between said arms. In other words,

ing the said lug at the side thereof opposite upper margin of the lug g and its arm 'h extends downwardly at the side of the lug oposi'te that engaged by the arm-h. The bars and H being rigidly attached to the rails the vertical arms h h by their contact with opposite sides of the interposed lugs g serve to hold the rails from endwise movement in a same time metallic contact between parts attached to the two rails is avoided. In the particular construction shown the bars H H cally and in contact with the webs of the passin one 0 Fig.3. Now referring to the form of construction inclusive, A A in said figures indicate the meeting'endsof the rails, and J J twojointb'ar-flanges of the rails,,generally inthe same manner as herelnbefore described in connecs tion with the joint-bars B B. 1 In this inthat serve to give stiffness to jthe central parts "of the jointbars. Said depending central vertical part of the bar which joins the flanges J J 1 The joint-bars J (shown in 4 to 7) when shaped in the particular manner shown have theadvantage that they ma made from a blank, such as is shown l in ldig'. 8, having the shape of .ioubl'e angle G, interposed the end of each bar H eX- tends beneath thelug g with its .arm h engagthe bar, while the bar H extends above the.

in the' joint illustrated in Figs. 4 to 7 both.

bars which engage theopposite sidesof th e anges J J are offsetoutwardly from the flanges andthe heads of the rails with later direction away from eachother, while at the have their outer end portions arranged verti, I

railsand are secured to,the lattes by bolts through said bars and the rails,-

said bolts being indicated by-l in roo with depending vertical stifleningflangesilfl or T bar. Said blank (shown in Fig. 8) has a main part or web 7' and a centrally-disposed flange at right angles thereto. Saidblank is bent to form to the angle-bar by bending one side of its web (part 7' downwardly to the position shown in and by bendingthe marginal part of its central flange y laterally into an inclined position, as is also shown in dotted lines m F g. 8. The end portions of the web part 1 are severed 'from the central part thereof by notches 9' (shown in Fig. 5,) so that the end portions of said web 7' may be left flat and the said central art thereof bent downwardly to the flanges J and horizontally opposite the grooves which receive the rail-flanges. By-

this construction the clamping action of the 'bolts K is transmitted to the parts ofthe joint-bars horizontally opposite the rail-base through the said washerplates L and their arms Z, the lower ends of said washer plates being adapted to bear inwardly 'upon the stiffening-flange below the bolts. The jointbars J J are shown as provided with spikeholes J J', which extend through the horizontal flanges J thereof and through which may be driven holding-spikes M, as shown in Figs. 4 and 6. The abutting ends of the rails A A are insulated from each other by means of an insulating layer or post N. Provision is made in this instance for connecting the meeting ends of the rails with each other,

- embracing metal bars or straps O O, a plied against opposite sides of the webs of t 1e rail and secured thereto by bolts P l. The said straps O O are insulated from the rails, prefcrably by means of thi'mbles Q of insulating material, which surround the bolts P and extend through the rail-web and also through the bolt-apertures of said bars, together with strips Q oi insulating material interposed between said bars and the rails and insulat-- ing-washers Q interposed between the bars and the heads and nuts on the bolts. In the construction shown in said Figs. 4 to 7' the insulation of the ends of the railsi'rom the joint-bars J J is effected by means of strips R of insulating material, which are folded over the side margins of thebase-flanges of the rails and are interposed between said baseilanges and the opposed surfaces of the grooves in the oint-bars.

in Fig 9,, 10, and 11 I have shown still anotherforrn-otrail-joint embodying the prinotted lines in said Fig. 8'

cipal feature of my invention. A A' in said the rails, between which is located an insulating plate or post G. The ends of the rails in this instance are connected with each other by a coupling device like that illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, consisting of coupling bars or members lTI H, having verticallyarranged overlapping arms h h, adapted to bear on opposite sides of lugs or project-ions on the insulating-post and secured to the rails by bolts 1, as hereinbei'ore described in connection with the corresponding parts illustrated in said Figs. 1 to 3. In this instance S S are twojoint-bars, which engage the opposite sides of the baserflanges of the rails and are generally like the joint-bars B B, (shown in Figs. 1 to 3,) the same being provided with top and bottom inwardly-extending flanges S S adapted to embrace the side margins of the base-flames of the rails. The said joint-bars S S in this instance, however, are designed to be madeoi cast metal and are provided with downwardly-wxtending lugs S S through which pass the transverse clamping-bolts T T, and which are made of considerable thickness and have such rigid connection with the base-flanges S S of the joint-bars that any washerplates, such as heads and nuts on the bolts T being adapted to bear directly against the outer face of tne 'oint-bars. In this instance insulating-strips U U are interposed between the top flanges S S and the base-flanges of therail ,while the rails are insulated from the bottom flanges S S by-Ineans of a flat platdoi's'trip V of wood, vulcanized fiber, or the like, which extends beneath and forms the sole support for the end of one of the rails, but projects onlyfa short distance beneath the adj aeent end of the other rail, which latter is supported upon the balse-flanges S S mainly by a separate'supporting plate or strip-V of metal-made of the same thicknesses the insulating-strip V and arranged in endwiseeabuttingrelation thereto. The construction described, including the metal plate V, is more especially designed to be employed in-a traek over which trains .usually run in one direction only, and in that case the said metal plate Y will be located beneath the end of the rail toward which the car-Wheels move in passing over the joint, the said plate V thus arranged being adapted to resist the jar or impact duo to the striking of the wheels against the end of the rails supported thereby as the wheels pass from one rail to the other. It is of course understood thatthe insulating-strip V serves to secure insulation of the ends ol' the rails from each other. in cases where the joint is used on a track over-'whioh trains pass in both dirertions the metal plate V will preferably be i omitted and the insulating-strip V made long Figs. 9'to 11 indicate the meeting ends ot- A hereinbefore described, are unnecessary, the.

3 5 clamping means enough to eXtend beneath the ends of both rails and to afford support therefor, Said.

Figs. 9 to 11 illustrateja devicedesignedto prevent endwise shifting of insulating-strips, 5 such as the strip U, with respect to the rails and the joint-bars. This device consists of a holding-stud N, made of a hard or strong insulating' material, such as hard rubber,.and

having at its lower end an enlarged part or 1'0 head w equal in thickness to'the thickness of the insulating l ayerU, and which .fits in a circular opening ma shank or main part of the stud bein inserted I 5 and fitting in a socket formed in t eupper;-

. flange S; of the joint-bar. The stud W, made as described, is ins'ertedin the socket of the flange from beneath, the head thereon serving to hold the stud from-outward or upward movement with respect .to the flange,

' while the contact of its head with the rail base serves to confine the stud within thesaid socket. Said stud'by it's engagement with the joint-bar and the insulating-strip '2'5 manifestly holds the latter from shifting either .endwise or laterally, and thus securely maintains it inoperative position.

I claim as my invention-- 1. The combination with track-rails, ofi

3 0 two joint-b are provided with inwardly-facing,

longitudinalifgrooves adapted to receive the t of insulating material interposed between the base-flanges and the-opposed surfaces'of said grooves,

base-flanges {of the rails, layers bars for holding the same-in engagement with with the said case-flanges, coupling means, separate from the 'oint-bar, for connecting the abutting ends or'the rails with each other provided. at their end portions with horizontel bearing-surfacesfor contact with-the ties, and at their entral portions with stiffening: flanges, layers of insulating material interposed between thesaid base-flanges and the o posed, surfaces Ofthe-grooves, horizontal 5 bolts located below the rails for clamping said joint-bar against the rails, coupling means, separate from the joint-bars, for connecting the abutting ends of the rails to eachother in a manner to prevent relative endwise movement of said rails, and insulation interposed between. the abutting ends of the rails and between the members of the coupling means for insulating the rails from each other. r

3. The combination'with track-rails, of

de in v said insulating layer in proper position to receivejit, the. e

sulation inter ing ends,

engaging. the opposite jOlIlilw receive the base-flanges of the raiis,:'said joint-bars being gitudinal'grooves a two jointdjars provided with inwardly-facing, longitudinal groovesadapted to receive the Qbase-flangesof the rails, said joint-bars having at theirend portions outwardly-extending, horizontal flanges and having on their side edges vertical stiiiening-flanges, layers of insulating surfaces of'said grooves, clamping means engaging sai doin hars for holding them in engagement ,'th the rails, coupling meanssep arate from the joint-bars for connecting the abutting ends of tha'a'ils in a manner to prevent endwise movement of the rails, and inosedbetween the abutting endsof the {rai sand between the members of thecouplingmeans for insulating the ends of the rails from eachother.

4. The combinationwith track-rails, of

material interposed be- I :tween the saidbase-flanges and the opposed,

two joint-barsprovidedwith inwardly-facing, I

longitudinal grooves a'da tedtorecelve the base-flanges of the rails, ayers of insulating material interposed between the said baseflanges and the opposed vsurfaces of said grooves, and means forconnecting the abutting ends ofthe rails. w th each other, comprising coupling'members secured to the rails, and having interlocking parts at their meetand a layer of insulating material the contact-surfaces of said interbetween lockin parts..- or

5. T e combination with track-rails, and an insulating layer interposed between the abutting ends thereof, of means for holding the rails from relative endwise movement comprising coupling members bolted to the webs of the rails and provided with interlocking parts, and a layer of insulating mate rial interposed between said interlocking parts. j r

6. The combination with trackrails, and a layer of insulating material between the abuttin I ends thereof, of the trac railsi-from relative 'endwise movement comprising a lateral extension or lug on said layer ofginsi'llating material, and two couplin members'se'cured to the webs of the rails an pro'yided with interlocking parts engaging opposite sides of said lateral ezitension or lug on the insulating layer..

7 The combination with track-rails, I of two joint-b ars having inwardly-facing, londaptedto receive the baseflanges of the'rails, layers'of insulating material interpose'dbetween thebase-flanges of the rails and the innen-surfaces of said grooves, an insulating layerlocated between means for holding the ends bf the'rails-and provided with a latv eral projection, 'couplmg-bars bolted to the rail-webs and having oppositely-directed vertical arms arranged in overlapped relationand'adapted to bear onopposi e sidesof the said projection on the insulating layer between the ends-ofthe rails. 1

8. The combination with a, rail, a joint-bar, and an insulating-strip interposed between the rail and joint-bar, of a headed holdingstud the shank of Which-engages a socket in 5 the j oint-bar and the head of which engages an opening in the insulating-strip.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix my signature, in presence of two Witnesses, this 5th day of March, A. l).

BENJAh [IN WOLHAUPTER. Witnesses:

C. CLARENCE POOLE, G. R. WILKINS. 

